Cafe worker takes down masked suspect who tried to rob customer

By Amanda Hari

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    SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX) — A man is in jail after a cafe worker in San Francisco’s Mission District took him to the ground when he attempted to rob a customer.

It happened early Friday morning at Carlin’s Cafe in the Mission District and some are calling the man a hero.

The whole thing was caught on surveillance video just after 6:30 a.m. Sunday.

Nick Grant was behind the counter when the masked man walked inside, he went directly for a customer’s backpack and Grant sprung into action.

“I realized he was in a situation where he needed help,” Grant said.

Things escalated quickly, the men exchanged punches and the masked man sprayed bear mace at Grant.

“I’m still feeling breathing problems to this day,” Grant said.

The mace impacted his vision and he sustained injuries on his face and arm.

Right before the attempted robbery, Jim Carroll was walking with his wife to the gym.

He saw a man who was masked and dressed in dark clothing, he was worried they were going to get robbed, but the man kept walking.

His wife turned around and saw the incident happening in the cafe and brought it to Carroll’s attention.

“Without even thinking I ran towards the restaurant,” Carroll said.

In the video, you can see him run through the door and immediately try to help Grant.

“I was on the phone with 911 and I tried to assess the situation and figure out which one was the robber. I figured out which one it was and put my arm around his neck,” Carroll said.

Grant then held the suspect down for more than six minutes, waiting for police to arrive.

Police identified the suspect as 42-year-old Amir Moner of Concord. He was transported and booked into San Francisco County Jail for the incident and other active out-of-county warrants.

Despite the scare, Grant and Carroll are grateful everyone is OK and they’ve made new friendships through a situation that could have been tragic.

“I feel a new connection with my community, and the owner, Matt, is an awesome guy. And Nick, Nick’s the real hero. I just stepped in and helped. He’s the hero,” Carroll said.

The cafe did shut down for a short time for cleanup after the attempted robbery but is now back to its normal operating hours.

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